Can a divorcee apply for an RDP house?

The long answer

Thank you for your email asking how you as a divorcee can apply for your own RDP house.

You can apply for a government subsidy RDP house if you are: (I have emphasised the third point where you should check to see if you qualify, as you don’t say in your email if you have dependents, or are living with a partner.)

• A South African citizen
• Over 21 and mentally competent to sign a contract
• Married or living with a partner, or single and have dependants (single military veterans or aged people without dependents also qualify)
• Earn less than R3,500 per month per household (so if two people in your family earn and these earnings amount to more than R3,500 per month you will not qualify)
• A first-time government subsidy recipient
• A first time home owner

If you are disabled you are supposed to be given preference and your house is supposed to be adapted to meet your needs.

To apply for a government Subsidy house take the following documents to a provincial office of the DHS, or your municipal offices:

• Your own (and partner’s identity documents, if you have a partner) which can be the green book or ID card
• Certified copies of birth certificates of children
• Proof of income if working, e.g. salary slip

You will be asked to fill in a housing subsidy application form. Depending on your province or municipality, you will then be registered on the National Housing Needs Register or your Municipal Housing Demands Database. This is a “waiting list”.

Once the project is finalised and the houses built, you will be given keys and a title deed to your home, but it can take many years.

You must keep your proof of registration. If you move let the department where you applied know so they can find you if your house becomes available